Gravel mines unearth profits, opposition

The irony, say the operators of one such business, is that the price of their homes depends on the proximity of building materials such as the sand and gravel used in foundations, sidewalks and roads.

In many cases the bill for shipping the material is higher than the cost of the material itself, said Ron Raupp, a supervisor for Meyer Material, a sand and gravel mining company in McHenry.

"The farther you ship sand and gravel, the more it will cost," Raupp said. "People don't realize building material is not everywhere. You really have to look for it. Geologists have to drill holes to find it. If you want to mine it, you have to rezone the property, which is often a farm, and that's a tough thing to do. I've been at zoning meetings with angry people who don't want a gravel mine in their town."

Gravel mining has been the focus of many heated debates in McHenry County. In 1999 Cary Park District residents approved a tax increase to pay $11.5 million for the 260-acre Hoffman farm to ensure it wouldn't become a gravel mine.

One reason for the number of disputes is the county's wealth of sand and gravel.

"About 12,500 years ago, sand and gravel shot down through this area on a sluiceway," said Wayne Schennum, a natural resource manager for the McHenry County Conservation District. "A torrent of melting glacier water flushed the sand and gravel down here, with the Fox River as a kind of conduit."

Sand and gravel sales nationwide last year were about $5.7 billion, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The demand for sand and gravel remains strong despite a sluggish economy, said Jane Snyder, a consultant with Pittsburgh-based Construction Market Research.

"With all the homebuilding, road projects and infrastructure improvements, we're having a good year," Snyder said of the gravel mining industry nationwide. "People want new houses and new roads."

Locally, much of the sand and gravel has been removed from sites such as Meyer's Crystal Lake Yard 10, a 250-acre operation on McHenry's south side. Raupp said his company--which has five other mines in McHenry County and another in Wisconsin and employs more than 500 people--wants to open more mines and is having a hard time.

Thirteen gravel mines, run by 10 companies on 1,953 acres, are operating in unincorporated parts of McHenry County, said SuzAnne Ehardt, the county official who issues mining permits.

Mining operations also can be found inside the towns of Algonquin, Lake in the Hills and Crystal Lake. Those operations generate millions of dollars in sales tax for the communities.

About $30 million worth of sand and gravel was excavated last year from mines in Lake in the Hills, said Pete Stefan, village treasurer. The village collected about $300,000 from Material Service, about 25 percent of Lake in the Hills' annual sales tax revenue.